LinuxGSM vs Pterodactyl
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted game servers options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
LinuxGSM
Command-line tool for dedicated game servers
VS
Pterodactyl
Free game server management panel
| Feature | LinuxGSM | Pterodactyl |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Game Servers | Game Servers |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Language | Shell | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 2,048 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal, source | docker, bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 4,881 | ★ 9,115 |
| First released | 2012 | 2015 |
| Replaces | TCAdmin, Multicraft | TCAdmin, Multicraft |
Why pick each one
Frequently asked questions
Is LinuxGSM or Pterodactyl better?
Neither is universally better. Pterodactyl has the larger community, while LinuxGSM is simpler to set up (medium difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are LinuxGSM and Pterodactyl free and open-source?
Yes. LinuxGSM is licensed under MIT and Pterodactyl under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run LinuxGSM and Pterodactyl with Docker?
LinuxGSM: check the project docs for container support. Pterodactyl: yes.